News Releases

The Financial Aid Office and the Career Development Center are working together to expand the Federal Work-Study program. The goal is to provide students with more job opportunities and the Caltech Community with additional student staff at very low cost.

Federal Work-Study (FWS) is a program of financial assistance for eligible students that is jointly-funded by federal and departmental contributions. It allows students to work to earn a portion of their college expenses. The Department of Education allocates funds to Caltech to pay 75% of the wages of work-study students so hiring offices only pay the remaining 25% of the wages. Some students have been awarded Caltech Work-Study, in these cases the cost sharing breakdown is 60%-40% Institute and departmental contributions.

If you are interested in hiring a work-study student, create an account and start posting your jobs now!

Instructions on how to post a job are available in the Supervisor Guide. Once you have hired a work-study student, please consult the Supervisor Guide for general guidelines on working with work-study students. Should you have any questions regarding the work-study program, please do not hesitate to contact the Financial Aid Office at x6280.

I invite you to attend Caltech's annual convocation ceremony held on Sunday, September 23, at 3:00 p.m. in Beckman Auditorium. The event offers a warm welcome and introduction to the Institute for new undergraduate students, their family and friends, new graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars.

The program includes greetings from President Rosenbaum, and a brief introduction to student life at Caltech inside and outside of the classroom. A special feature this year will be a presentation on Caltech's Performing and Visual Arts with performances featuring postdocs Sandra Koenig and Rajib Schubert, graduate student Matteo Ronchi, and undergraduate students Tara Porter and Sara Fish. Performances will highlight some of the activities that are available and the positive impact the experience of participating in performing and visual arts has had on their time at Caltech.

Your presence will add to this event's importance for the new members of our academic community and their families. I hope that you will be able to attend.

I'm pleased to announce Antonio Rangel, Bing Professor of Neuroscience, Behavioral Biology, and Economics, as the new Head Faculty in Residence (Head FIR) effective August 1, 2018.

The Head FIR is a professorial faculty member whose goal is to foster an environment within the residences that promotes informal interactions between faculty and students, opportunities for learning, and a sense of community that extends beyond the classroom and laboratory. In addition, the Head FIR will mentor new Faculty in Residence (FIR) and will help grow the FIR program in coordination with Student Affairs.

Prof. Rangel earned his B.S. at Caltech and his Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University. He joined Caltech in 2006 in the Division of Humanities and Social Science and was appointed as a FIR in 2015. Over the past three years, he has demonstrated his aptitude and capability as the FIR in Avery House. Since February 2018, he has also chaired the Advisory Committee on Residential Life (ACRL). In his capacity as both a FIR and chair, Prof. Rangel has demonstrated a strong commitment to improving the residential experience at Caltech.

We are writing to share news about two important transitions in personnel that will take place next month.

Felicia Hunt, who is currently the assistant vice president for equity, accessibility, and inclusion initiatives within Student Affairs as well as Caltech's Title IX coordinator, will be taking on a new role as the leader of the newly established Office of Residential Experience. As the assistant vice president of student affairs and residential experience, Felicia will coordinate all of the activities related to our residential community under the new Office of Residential Experience.

April White-Castañeda, the assistant director for human resources at JPL, will be returning to campus to become the assistant vice president for equity, equity investigations, and Title IX coordinator. In this role, April will have responsibilities for equity and equity investigations in addition to taking over as Caltech's Title IX coordinator. April will continue to build upon previous efforts to promote and reinforce Caltech's commitment to provide a safe, inclusive, and respectful learning, living, and working environment for students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty, and staff.

These changes are effective August 1, 2018.

Felicia has been a member of the Caltech community for nearly a decade, fostering relationships across campus and educating our community on issues of equity, inclusion, and Title IX compliance. She has served as the assistant vice president for equity, accessibility, and inclusion initiatives, and Title IX coordinator since 2015. Prior to that, she was the associate dean of graduate studies (2009-2015), and director of the Caltech women's center (2007-2009). Before joining Caltech, Felicia worked extensively with residential communities at Cornell University. She earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of San Diego and a Doctor of Education in educational leadership from the University of Southern California (USC).

As we mark this important transition in our leadership, and the relocation of the Title IX office from student affairs to human resources, we would like to acknowledge the challenges that Felicia and the deputy Title IX coordinators addressed together with our community. Felicia has worked proactively to build an inclusive approach to education and prevention, while also responding to sexual harassment and sexual violence. She has brought passion and professionalism to her work in the Title IX office and to the campus community overall. April will have an excellent foundation and resources to draw upon as Caltech takes the next steps in equity and inclusion.

April is very familiar with our JPL and campus community, serving in a number of capacities over her nearly two-decade career at Caltech. She has been the assistant director for human resources at JPL since 2016. Prior to that, she was the executive director of human resources (2011-2016), senior director for employee and organizational development (2007-2011), director of staff education and career development (2004-2007), and director of consulting services for the Faculty and Staff Consultation Center (1999-2004). April has also held an adjunct faculty appointment with the School of Social Work at USC and continues her engagement there as a guest lecturer and speaker. April earned a bachelor's degree in women's studies/cross-cultural studies from the University of California, Los Angeles and a master's degree in industrial/ organizational social work from USC.

April and Felicia are already working together to coordinate the transition of Title IX responsibilities and will continue to do so as April settles into her role. Felicia has also begun working and partnering with our residential life staff and their current leaders, as well as colleagues across student affairs who are involved in shaping the residential experience on campus.

Please join us in congratulating both these leaders on their new roles, as well as thanking them for their dedicated service to the Institute.

Dr. Barbara Green, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Students, has announced that she will be retiring in the summer of 2018. Dean Green has been a vital and essential member of our community since she joined Caltech on September 1, 1989, after serving as Dean of Students at Whittier College from 1977 to 1989 and Assistant Dean of Students at Purdue University from 1974 to 1977. She has brought a thoughtful and kind manner to her work with students to help them overcome challenges and succeed at Caltech. Day in and day out, she has been tireless in her compassionate and patient engagement with our students, with their parents, and with faculty. Respected for her fairness and her personal approach, Dean Green has earned our students' trust and confidence as she has helped them navigate personal and academic challenges, large and small. Generations of students count her among the significant factors that have enabled them to achieve personal growth as well as academic success.

An esteemed and valued colleague in Student Affairs, Dean Green has also taken on very substantial administrative responsibilities. In her role as Associate Dean, she has worked with seven faculty deans. In 2003, Dean Green took on an additional responsibility as disability services coordinator for our graduate and undergraduate students. She had sole responsibility for the Undergraduate Deans' office in 2010-11 and served as interim dean during academic year 2015-16. She also has played a key role in welcoming our prospective and incoming students through her leadership of the freshman orientation program.

Dean Green has skillfully worked behind the scenes with faculty to assist in the development and support of academic programs that ensure student success. Along with pleasant tasks, such as determining how to spend discretionary funds on student-led activities, she has taken on such challenging responsibilities as working with students in crisis and serving on the Conduct Review Committee. Dean Green has been a passionate advocate for student engagement and personal growth, and has supported and provided valuable counsel to students in leadership positions. She has served as a key liaison to the undergraduate Board of Control, responsible for preserving academic integrity under the Honor Code system. In recognition of Dean Green's many contributions to the Caltech community, she was elected as an honorary member of the Caltech Alumni Association in 2000 and received the Thomas W. Schmitt Annual Staff Prize in 2013 (www.caltech.edu/schmittprize/2013).

Dean Kevin Gilmartin has been leading a national search for Dean Green's successor during this academic year. A hiring committee consisting of our faculty, students, and staff has been considering applicants and is currently interviewing candidates.

I want to extend my personal thanks and appreciation for Barbara's many contributions during her time at Caltech. We are planning a community event to celebrate her career, and the date for this will be announced later this spring.

On April 12, the Veritas Forum at Caltech will discuss "What does human progress mean?". Featuring Dr. Alana Ackerson, a finance leader and entrepreneur based in Silicon Valley, and Dr. Christopher Hitchcock, Professor of Philosophy from Caltech, we will explore this enduring question through the lens of technology, science, and philosophy. Human progress is often driven by innovations in science and technology, more pronounced than ever in our current digital era. These advances rapidly transform our society and warrant leaders in all fields, including STEM, industry, and finance, to think critically about how science and technology shape progress and development. The Forum will focus on how the next generation of leaders can think about implementing technology in a way that allows for true human progress.

The Forum will consist of short presentations, a moderated discussion between Dr. Ackerson and Professor Hitchcock, and an open Q&A session with audience members. We value your input for the discussion and invite you to submit your questions prior to the Forum via this link. Light refreshments will be served at the end of the Forum.

Dear ColleaguesAs Caltech's Title IX Coordinator, it is my responsibility to help ensure awareness and understanding of the Institute's commitment to providing a safe and supportive environment with regard to sexual misconduct. As such, I think it is important that we take time annually to familiarize ourselves with our values and initiatives.

Caltech believes that all members of the community have the right to be treated, and the responsibility to treat others, with dignity and respect. Our Title IX initiatives are firmly fixed within these values. Caltech's Title IX Office engages in efforts to end, prevent, and address all forms of sexual misconduct including sex discrimination, sexual and gender based harassment, and sexual violence and will not tolerate, and will not accept, such behavior.

In 2012, we began a process to add a new undergraduate residence—the Bechtel Residence—to our campus. Since that time, our community has been actively involved in a collaborative process and dialogue to shape the physical structure, design, and layout of Bechtel, as well as to reflect on how best to incorporate this new building into our residential life system.

The introduction of Bechtel is a major event in our small community; it will enable nearly all of our undergraduates to live on campus, will result in additional housing for graduate students, and will significantly change Caltech's residential life experience overall. My letter today is to inform you about the outcome of our discussions and deliberations, and to share with you our plans for enhancing residential life and for the opening of the Bechtel Residence in the fall of 2018.

I thank all the members of the Caltech community who have contributed to this process. In particular, I commend our students for their significant contributions over the last year in creating the Committee on Undergraduate Caltech Housing (COUCH) and conducting the committee meetings, presentations, and discussions that led to their final report. Consultation with our trustees, alumni, faculty, Student Affairs staff, and administrators has been equally essential in developing a final plan for our campus. President Thomas F. Rosenbaum and Provost David Tirrell have also offered valuable guidance and leadership, as well as feedback on earlier draft recommendations, and have endorsed my final decision and plan as a framework for opening the Bechtel Residence and for the future of residential life at Caltech.

In advancing this plan, the core values of our community have been the guiding principles. The key elements of the plan are:

Bechtel will be a multi-use, multi-generational residence open to all undergraduates. Bechtel will provide a new model of residential living that will be distinct from the House system.

The residents of Bechtel will be full members of the residential life system, and will be represented in all student activities and in the shared governance of residential life.

A new Advisory Committee on Residential Life will be established to help implement the initial changes, provide ongoing assessment of Bechtel and the Houses, and make recommendations to me for further steps or improvements. The committee will include faculty, staff, and students.

The process for residence assignments for freshmen as well as upperclass picks will be reformed to maximize student choice and reflect our core values.

Current off-campus undergraduate housing will be converted to graduate housing beginning in the fall of 2018.

A new Residential Experience office will be established within Student Affairs to coordinate residential life activities and serve undergraduate students, residential associates, residence life staff, and Faculty-in-Residence.

The Faculty-in-Residence program will be expanded to promote engagement between students and faculty in the residences.

As we move forward in implementing this plan and finalizing the details for this coming year, it is essential that we continue our collaborative efforts. Students, faculty, and staff will have an opportunity to serve on the newly formed Advisory Committee on Residential Life, to provide input to the committee members, and to develop proposals.

In order to be ready for the fall of 2018, our work will begin immediately. Next week we will ask all continuing students to fill out a short survey so that we can obtain their preferences regarding on-campus living for next year.

I look forward to working with all of you in the Caltech community on these next steps.

Proposals to the Moore-Hufstedler Fund for enhanced student life at Caltech are due on Friday, January 19, 2018 by 5:00 p.m. This is the time to apply if you wish to receive funding for Spring 2018. Any member of the Caltech community may apply for funding.

Please send proposals, only from your '@caltech.edu' email address, to mhf@caltech.edu as other email addresses can filter as spam and may delay your proposal. LATE PROPOSALS AND HARD COPIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.